Ministry of Justice

New Zealand Disability Strategy Implementation 2007. Work Plan 2007-2008 and Report on Progress 2006-2007

Introduction

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for three core functions:

delivery of operational services including court-related and tribunal-related services, electoral services and negotiations for settling historical Treaty of Waitangi claims;
provision of policy advice; and
leadership of the justice sector.

These functions are administered in three Votes: Justice; Treaty Negotiations; and Courts.

The Ministry’s Disability Strategy implementation plan 2007/08 has been developed directly from its 2007/08 Statement of Intent. This sets the implementation plan in the broader context of overall achievement of justice sector outcomes, as well as ensuring that action commitments are built into business workplans and progress reported on during the year.

The following tables show the relevant justice sector outcomes, the Ministry’s areas of contribution to those outcomes, and specific initiatives included in the Ministry’s 2007/08 Statement of Intent.

The tables also show how the initiatives will contribute to removing barriers to participation by disabled people1. This constitutes the implementation plan for 2007/08, and will form the basis of monitoring progress against the plan. Reporting on achievements will be included in the Ministry’s Annual Report.

1 In developing this plan, the Ministry of Justice has followed the terminology of ‘disabled people’ provided by the Office for Disability Issues, that is people who have impairments which may exclude them from participation or independence because of service design, communication channels, buildings and attitudes, which may make aspects of society inaccessible to them.

Justice sector outcomes	Ministry contributions to outcomes	Relevant Ministry initiatives in 2007/08 Statement of Intent	Links to New Zealand Disability Strategy (see following table for details)
Accessible justice services.	Supporting accessible courts and tribunals.	Progressing work on a customer contact strategy, including the introduction of standards to ensure consistent service delivery to jurors in District Courts. Ongoing building development, construction and refurbishment of properties for which the Ministry is responsible. This includes implementing enhanced evidence recording and transcription in courts.	Service delivery to users of Ministry services will aim to reduce barriers to participation by disabled people. Development and refurbishment of Ministry properties will take into account accessibility issues for disabled people.
Effective constitutional arrangements.	Managing the parliamentary electoral system.	Preparations for the conduct of the 2008 general election.	Design of the 2008 general election processes will include improved access to electoral services for disabled people.
Trusted justice system.	Ensuring the relevance of laws and regulations.	Leading or contributing to the development of periodic reports to the United Nations on compliance with human rights conventions, such as the report on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.	The Ministry will contribute to ensuring that New Zealand’s laws and regulations do not disadvantage disabled people. Ongoing vetting of Bills for consistency with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. Includes vetting for consistency with the right to be free from discrimination on the grounds of disability.

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Key Actions in the Ministry of Justice Implementation Plan 2007/08

Links to New Zealand Disability Strategy	Ministry of Justice Actions
Service delivery to users of Ministry services will aim to reduce barriers to participation by disabled people.	The services of sign language interpreters will be available in courts. This is part of a broader approach to address the delivery of interpreting services in courts. A service charter for jurors will be developed - what they can expect when they arrive for jury service. This will include the provision of interpreters. Ministry communications materials will be reviewed, covering jury service for potential jurors, summonsed jurors and the media, to ensure relevant and up to date information is available at all times. This will include information for disabled jurors. Collections call centres will have the capability to accept New Zealand Relay calls (a service for meeting the telephone communication needs of deaf, hearing impaired and speech impaired people.)
Development and refurbishment of Ministry properties will take into account accessibility issues for disabled people.	All planned building works for 2007/08 will comply with the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975. In addition to the above, for all planned building works the Ministry will comply with the Building Act and the Building Amendments Act 2005 with specific focus on access and facilities for disabled people (NZBC ref CS15). When planning new courthouses, the Ministry will comply with regulations that indicate accessible carparks should be provided. The Ministry will continue to upgrade sound systems in courtrooms, including the progressive provision of modern facilities for the hearing impaired.
Design of the 2008 general election processes will include improved access to electoral services for disabled people.	The Electoral agencies, including the Chief Electoral Office which is part of the Ministry of Justice, will implement initiatives to improve access for disabled people to the enrolment process, to information about MMP and the election, and access to voting at the election. Refer to Elections New Zealand: Access ’08 Action Plan for details: http://www.elections.org.nz/voting/improving-access-consultation.html
Ministry’s contribution to ensure that New Zealand’s laws and regulations do not disadvantage disabled people	Leading the development of New Zealand’s periodic report on the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Providing input to the ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Ongoing vetting of new Bills under the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act Compliance with the Cabinet requirement that where appropriate, papers submitted to the Cabinet Social Development Committee or other Committees should include a disability perspective, i.e. consideration of the impact of policies and proposals on disabled people.

These specific action points are underpinned by ongoing Ministry activities to remove barriers to service access by disabled people. These include:

Improving the accessibility of the Ministry’s web based and hard copy information.
Ensuring that front-line staff training programmes include disability responsiveness components.

Go to Electons New Zealand

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Accessible government

All government agencies are asked to prioritise actions to increase their accessibility to disabled people. This is about getting the basics right, so that disabled people can access government on the same basis as other people.

These actions support the realisation of the New Zealand Disability Strategy’s objective 6: foster an aware and responsive public service.

Four critical areas where disabled people interact with government agencies are:

information – such as brochures, letters, publications, websites
buildings – such as service centres, corporate offices
services – such as face to face at a service centre, call centres, information electronically or hard copy
as an employer – such as job application procedures, job descriptions, accommodations in workplaces, intranets.

Achievement story
Please tell us about an achievement of your agency in 2006-2007 to improve your accessibility, what this involved, and the effect this has had on disabled people.

Courtroom Sound Systems During the year the sound systems in approximately 30 courts were upgraded as part of improving evidence recording and transcription services. This work spans High Courts, District Courts and the Maori Land Court.

As a result of these upgrades, people with hearing impairments will experience improved sound quality regardless of which part of the courtroom they are in.

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Accessible information

Outcome: Disabled people can access publicly available government information on the same basis as non-disabled people. Disabled people know about, access and use government information and services.

Please describe against the suggested action outputs what your agency planned to do in the year ending June 2007, what your actual achievements were, and what you plan to work on for the year ending June 2008. Grey highlighted action outputs are new this year.

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1. Online information (internet and intranets)

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Meet Web Guidelines version 2.1	Working towards full compliance with e-govt Web Guidelines 2.1 during the 2006/07 financial year.	Results of accessibility testing (refer below) led to a focus on manageable and achievable enhancements during 2006/07.	The Ministry will continue working towards meeting e-govt web standards.
2. Meet Web Guidelines versions 3.0	Working towards full compliance with e-govt Web Guidelines 2.1 during the 2006/07 financial year. New requirement for 2007/08.	The Ministry follows the Web Standards v. 1.0 which are the first set of ‘standards’ resulting from the previous ‘guidelines’. The Ministry successfully completed PDF-to-HTML conversion of all PDF documents on www.justice.govt.nz offered to the public.	Through regular external assessment of www.justice.govt.nz the Ministry has identified areas for improvement and will continue working towards meeting the e-govt standards v. 1.0.
3. Tested accessibility for disabled people	The Ministry planned to utilise an external company to carry out website accessibility testing of its main website. The results would be used to develop a detailed work plan for implementing accessibility testing.	The Ministry utilised an external company twice during 2006/07 to test accessibility of its main website. The Family Court website was also tested.	The Ministry will continue to test its main website for accessibility during 2007/08.
4. Adapted to increase accessibility	Refer above and below.	Refer above and below.	Refer above and below. In addition, the ‘Elections’ website will have existing audio-visual material available for download. This will include TV and radio advertising.
5. Download files accessed as HTML, and not only PDF	The Ministry’s project to make downloadable files on the website available in HTML and not only PDF on the Ministry’s main website at www.justice.govt.nz was planned for completion in 2006/07 with the following three exceptions: a) documents in foreign languages b) Family Court decisions c) Interactive forms (e.g. Family Court forms).	The Ministry completed its project to make downloadable files on the website available in HTML and not only PDF on the Ministry’s main website at www.justice.govt.nz. There were four exceptions to this: a) documents in foreign languages b) Court decisions c) Interactive forms (e.g. Family Court forms) d) 3rd party PDFs published on the Ministry website.	All new downloadable files (excluding the four categories of exception) on the Ministry website will be available in HTML and not only PDF.
6. Plain English used	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	A writing style guide is to be developed for the Ministry as a whole, with guidance to be included on the importance of using plain English.
7. New Zealand Sign Language used	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	Nothing planned.

Go to Ministry of Justice

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2. Hard copy information

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Plain English used	New requirement for 2007/08.	A writing seminar was held for research staff, with an emphasis on plain English for reports written for public audiences.	A writing style guide is to be developed for the Ministry as a whole, with guidance to be included on the importance of using plain English. A simple English and pictorial resource on the electoral process will be produced.
2. Available in alternate formats, on request. Key electoral publications are produced in a range of formats
a. New Zealand Sign Language	Not applicable.		Not applicable.
b. Braille	Nothing planned.		Nothing planned.
c. Audio	Nothing planned.		Key electoral publications will be made available in accessible audio formats.

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3. Audio/visual resources

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. TV adverts have captions and/or NZSL	Nothing planned.	Captions on TV advertisements relating to the electoral process run for longer than 5 seconds, to assist comprehension by people with reading disabilities.	The Elections website will have existing audio-visual material available for download. This will include TV and radio advertising.
2. DVD/video products have captions and/or NZSL	The Chief Electoral Office planned to further develop previous work undertaken for the deaf community that allowed them to better participate in the 2005 General Election and apply it for people with other disabilities, such as the blind. As part of this work, the Chief Electoral Office intended to build on the success of the Sign Language DVD as part of its revised Disability Action Plan leading towards the 2008 General Election. It planned to look at using specially formatted material for the blind and also to review options for providing information in different formats.	A Sign Language DVD on the electoral process is available.	The Elections website will have existing audio-visual material available for download.

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4. Other information

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Multiple contact points are advertised as well as telephone	Available, no actions planned.	Available.	Available, no actions planned.
a. Fax
b. Email
2. Please tell us if there are other things that your agency does/or is planning to do to make its information accessible

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Accessible buildings

Outcome: Disabled people can visit, work, and move about independently in all government buildings and carry on ordinary activities there, on the same basis as others.

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1. Structural elements

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. All buildings and sites meet regulatory access requirements (e.g. NZS 4121)	In the 2006/07 year, the courthouses listed below were planned to be upgraded and made compliant with the requirements of the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975 with regard to toilets, access ramps and lifts: Blenheim District and High Court, Greymouth District Court, Queenstown District Court, Hastings District Court, Invercargill District Court and Levin District Court. These works are part of the Ministry’s Capital Works programme that covers all of the Ministry’s properties nationwide.	The following courthouses have been upgraded and made compliant with the requirements of the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975 with regard to toilets, access ramps and lifts: Blenheim District and High Court, Greymouth District Court, Queenstown District Court. Hastings District Court is scheduled to commence construction in 2007/2008, and the Levin District Court is in the planning phase. A decision was made to refurbish rather than replace the Invercargill District Court.	All planned building works for 2007/08 will comply with the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975. In addition to the above, for all planned building works, the Ministry will continue to comply with the Building Act and the Building Amendments Act 2005 with specific focus on access and facilities for people with disabilities (NZBC ref CS15).
2. Buildings and sites have Building Code compliance	All of the Ministry’s buildings comply with the Building Code. Included amongst the Ministry’s properties are 21 buildings that have a Heritage classification, which limits the extent to which these buildings can be altered or modified. In these buildings, compliance has been achieved in the best practical ways available.	All Ministry-owned buildings comply with the Building Code.	All Ministry-owned buildings comply with the Building Code. Included amongst the Ministry’s properties are 21 buildings that have a Heritage classification, which limits the extent to which these buildings can be altered or modified. In these buildings, compliance has been achieved in the best practical ways available.
3. Buildings and sites are audited for accessibility and passed (e.g. Barrier Free Trust, other accredited accessibility advisor)	The Ministry planned to consider accessibility compliance and auditing, working with Barrier Free Trust and other such audit service providers.	The Ministry is currently considering accessibility compliance and auditing.	Implement auditing of sites, record results and, subject to funding, consider options for improvements in conjunction with planned or future works. Electoral staff will use checklists to assess the accessibility of advance voting facilities and polling places. These checklists will be reviewed in conjunction with Barrier Free to ensure that they give an accurate picture of accessibility, and are easy for staff to use correctly.
4. Clear walk paths through floors (for staff and visitors)	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	The Ministry properties are compliant – having Code Compliance Certificates issued upon the completion of projects or Building Warrants of Fitness issued annually. Building Warrant of Fitness covers Means of Escape from Fire.
5. Assistive listening devices are in meeting rooms, and functioning checked regularly	Hearing Loops Future technology requirements for courthouses were planned to be reviewed by the Ministry, including the progressive provision of modern facilities for the hearing impaired. Courtroom Sound Systems In 2006/07 the Ministry planned to begin significant upgrading of the sound systems in over 30 courtrooms around the country, as part of the Evidence Recording and Transcription service. The Ministry’s new Courtroom Sound System Requirements Standard is planned for implementation from July 2006 in all new buildings or refurbishments.	During the year the sound systems in approximately 30 courts were upgraded, spanning High Courts, District Courts and the Maori Land Court.	In 2007/08 the balance of court sound systems will be upgraded, totalling 44 courts.
6. Elevators announce floors and direction of movement	New requirement for 2007/08.	All lifts in the Ministry’s buildings conform to the requirements of the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975.	Any planned lift upgrades will be compliant with the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975 plus amendments 2005.
7. Elevator buttons have Braille labels	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	Any planned lift upgrades will be compliant with the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975.

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2. Contact with the public

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Reception areas are accessible	1. Reception areas are accessible Yes. No actions planned.	Not applicable.	No actions planned.
2. Counters used by public are lowered (e.g. for wheelchair users, people who have a problem standing)	The Ministry has to consider issues of court security with regard to lowered counters. Where service counters in courthouses are not lowered, there are interview rooms adjacent to these counters for use by people with disabilities and for others who are unable to access services across the counter.	In more recent upgrades, the Ministry has included a disabled persons’ counter (for both staff and customer).	No actions planned.
3. Frontline staff are trained in disability responsiveness	Customer Focus training was planned to be developed and rolled out to frontline District Courts staff during 2006/07 financial year. This includes appropriate content and/or a module to cover disability responsiveness.	Disability responsiveness was included in the District Courts Customer Service Skills training programme undertaken during 2006/07.	The District Courts Customer Service Skills training programme will continue during 2007/08.
4. Staff are familiar with NZ Relay service	The Ministry will consult NZ Relay with regard to including a training module in the training programme for its Collections call centre staff.	The Collections call centre investigated the inclusion of a disability responsiveness module as part of call centre skills training.	A disability responsiveness module will be incorporated within 6 months and a key component of this module will be the NZ Relay service.
5. Clear and accessible pathways to enter buildings and sites	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	The Ministry’s properties will be compliant.
6. Obvious and visible signage to locate entrances and exits	New requirement for 2007/08.	All Ministry buildings have the required signage that conforms to the requirements of the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975.	All Ministry buildings will have signage that conforms to the requirements of the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975 and Building Act 2004 and amendments.
7. Accessible car parking available near entrances	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	When planning new courthouses, the Ministry will comply with regulations that indicate accessible carparks should be provided. Accessible advance voting facilities and polling places - including carparks - for the 2008 General Election will be advertised with the International Symbol of Access.

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3. Workplace management

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Contracts for IT applications require accessibility (for staff and/or public users) (e.g. EDRMS)	The Ministry planned to establish governance and compliance frameworks. These include guidelines for authors and publishers of web related materials and content being supplied to the Ministry.	A Ministry working group produced technical guidelines for internal and external authors and publishers of web related materials.	The adjustment of contractual agreements with external suppliers to ensure e-govt compliance of web related products.
2. Fire safety and evacuation procedures specify the needs of disabled people (staff and visitors)	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	All fire safety and evacuation procedures displayed within Ministry buildings will be prepared by specialist fire consultants and specify the needs of disabled people.
3. Fire alarms have flashing lights to alert hearing impaired/deaf people	New requirement for 2007/08.	New requirement for 2007/08.	The Ministry will address this issue on any planned works for 2007/08.

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Accessible services

Outcome: Disabled people can access government services on the same basis as non-disabled people.

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1. Policy and practice

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Data on service users can be disaggregated by disabled people	No. No actions planned.	Not applicable.	No actions planned.
2. Services are responsive to the needs of disabled people	Each parliamentary term the Chief Electoral Office seeks to improve its service to the voting public and to the political parties and candidates who contest elections. In 2006/07, the Chief Electoral Office planned to review the 2005 Election action plan to focus their project work towards the planned 2008 General Election. As part of this, the Office will continue to work in consultation with various disability organisations and community groups. Some priorities include: continuing to ensure that the Chief Electoral Office website meets accessibility guidelines. continue to ensure polling places and advance voting facilities are accessible for voters with disabilities. providing information in various formats and investigating possible other useful formats, e.g. continuing to investigate ways to reduce barriers to voting for blind and visually impaired voters, such as provision of a Braille template for the ballot papers.	As part of planning to improve accessibility for the 2008 General Election, the Chief Electoral Office, the Electoral Commission and the Electoral Enrolment Centre consulted widely across the disability sector, government and the community. Consultation confirmed that improvements to three areas would help improve access to electoral services: information – content and format; information – distribution, and physical access and help An accessibility action plan for the 2008 General Election has been finalised, and will be implemented during 2007/08.	Implementation of the Action Plan for the 2008 General Election. This will comprise a mixture of new and continuing initiatives including: improving accessibility of information about elections by the use of simple English, pictorial resources, etc; improving the way that this information is distributed to people with disabilities, for example by getting appropriate information to caregivers, and improving physical access and assistance, for example by using temporary aids such as ramps to improve polling place access. It is intended to have all new initiatives in place by 31 May 2008.
3. There is a written policy on use and provision of New Zealand Sign Language interpreters for client meetings	The New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006 provides for the use of NZ Sign Language in legal proceedings before any coroner and in any legal proceedings in almost all the courts and tribunals in NZ. In the 2006/07 financial year, the Ministry planned to: • produce a general information pamphlet on NZ Sign Language for the public. • draft and implement Guidelines for Staff regarding jurors who are deaf. • progress the Interpreters Strategy Project – New Zealand Sign Language is one part of this. • take part in ongoing working groups and inter-agency developments related to the implementation of the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006.	The Ministry developed a pamphlet on Using NZSL in Court which outlines the rights of users of NZSL to use NZSL in court proceedings and informs people how to go about letting the court know that they wish to use NZSL. Guidelines for staff regarding jurors who are deaf will be rolled into the service charter for jurors which is planned to be developed in 2007/08. The Ministry developed an Interpreters Strategy and Action Plan during 2006. The Action Plan sets out priorities and goals for addressing issues which include the supply of interpreters, improving the quality of interpreters and promoting collaboration across agencies accessing interpreting services.	In the 2007/08 financial year, the Ministry plans to: develop a service charter for jurors which sets out what they can expect when they arrive for jury service. This will include the provision of interpreters. review communications materials about jury service for potential jurors, summonsed jurors and the media, to ensure relevant and up to date information is available at all times. This will include information for disabled jurors. if the Criminal Procedure Bill is passed, update all juror materials for the new Act. subject to resourcing, implement the Ministry’s Interpreters Action Plan. The Chief Electoral Office will work with appropriate organisations to have sign language interpreters available at some polling places for the 2008 General Election.
4. Staff dealing with service users are trained to understand and be responsive to disabled people’s needs	Customer Focus training is planned to be developed and rolled out to frontline District Courts staff during 2006/07 financial year. This will include appropriate content and/or a module to cover disability responsiveness.	Disability responsiveness was included in the District Courts Customer Service Skills training programme undertaken during 2006.07.	The District Courts Customer Service Skills training programme will continue during 2007/08. Disability awareness will be included in training for Returning Officers and Election Day Staff
5. Staff have knowledge of the NZ Relay service, and how to place and receive calls.	The Ministry planned to consult with NZ Relay with regard to including a training module in the training programme for its Collections call centre staff.	The Collections call centre investigated the inclusion of a disability responsiveness module as part of call centre skills training.	A disability responsiveness module will be incorporated within 6 months and a key component of this module will be the NZ Relay service.

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Being a good employer

Outcome: Government agencies provide equal opportunities in employment for disabled people to be recruited, retained, and promoted on the same basis as non-disabled people.

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1. Employment practice

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Human resource EEO policies / procedures specifically recognise disabled people and do not discriminate against them	Yes. No actions planned.		No actions planned.
2. Recruitment processes are accessible and responsive (eg vacancies advertised with alternative modes of contact, website accessible, supports provided for interviews where necessary)	Yes. No actions planned.		No actions planned.
3. Human resource staff are familiar with EEO issues for disabled people	Yes. No actions planned.		No actions planned.
4. Induction training includes awareness of disabled people, as part of a diverse workforce	New requirement for 2007/08.	All new employees are required to read and formally acknowledge the responsibilities of the Ministry’s Code of Conduct. This includes disability awareness through the expectations of all employees to respect the rights of others, and through the Ministry’s responsibilities as a good employer. The Code of Conduct is also raised and discussed in business unit induction programmes.	No actions planned.
5. Internal agency communications promote the visibility of disabled staff, as part of a diverse workforce	In the monthly staff newsletter Working Together, the Ministry planned to look at appropriate ways to acknowledge the role that the Ministry’s disabled staff are playing in the ongoing development and day-to-day operations of the Ministry.	No specific disability-related articles appeared in the monthly staff newsletter Working Together during 2006-2007.	The monthly staff newsletter Working Together will, as appropriate, include articles that acknowledge the role that the Ministry’s disabled staff are playing in the ongoing development and day-to-day operations of the Ministry
6. Data: the number of disabled people employed (using SSC EEO definition of disability)		Approximately 3% of the Ministry workforce identify as have some form of disability. This data should be used with caution as it is derived from the recruitment process and therefore may not capture long-standing employees with disabilities.	No actions planned.
7. Data: the number of disabled people currently employed under Mainstream programme		Data not recorded in HR systems.	No actions planned.
8. Data: the number of staff employed who were previously under the Mainstream programme		Data not recorded.	No actions planned.

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2. Supports for disabled staff

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Assessments of workplace accommodations and/or supports are provided (eg adaptive computer applications, flexible working conditions)	Yes. No actions planned.		Current practice will continue.
2. Accommodations in the workplace are provided, if needed (eg desk changes, NZSL interpreters, adaptive computer software)	Yes. No actions planned.		Current practice will continue.
3. Data: the number and type of accommodations provided to staff	Data not collated.		No actions planned.
4. Network of disabled staff supported, if requested	Yes. When Ministry staff were surveyed in regard to forming or participating in a network, their response indicated a preference to participate in a network that was already established, e.g. through the State Services Commission.		Current practice will continue.
5. Disabled staff provided with opportunities for career advancement	Yes. No actions planned.		Current practice will continue.
6. Disabled staff feel included in their workplace and have the same opportunities as non-disabled staff	New requirement for 2007/08.	No issues have been raised that would suggest disabled staff do not feel included in their workplace.	No actions planned.
7. Please describe any other supports available to disabled staff		The Ministry provides appropriate support tailored to the individual needs of the disabled staff member.

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Including a disability perspective

Achievement story
Please tell us about an achievement of your agency in 2006-2007 to include a disability perspective in new policy or service development, what this involved, any consultation with disability sector organisations, and the effect the policy or service has had/or will have on disabled people.

As part of planning to improve accessibility for the 2008 General Election, the Chief Electoral Office, the Electoral Commission and the Electoral Enrolment Centre consulted widely across the disability sector, government and the community.

The consultation confirmed that improvements to three areas would help improve access to electoral services for disabled people:

information – content and format;
information – distribution, and
physical access and help

An accessibility action plan for the 2008 General Election has been finalised, and will be implemented during 2007/08.

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Policy making and service development

Outcome: Government agencies’ policy development shows analysis of the impact upon disabled people. Disabled people experience an increase in their well-being and ability to participate in society as the result of government policy.

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. New policy and service development specifies the impact on disabled people	The Ministry planned to take part in ongoing working groups and inter-agency developments relating to the implementation of the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006.	Input and feedback was provided by the Ministry as required, as part of the Ministry’s ongoing participation in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s cross-agency forum.	Impacts on disabled people will continue to be considered as part of all policy development.
2. Quality assurance frameworks include reference to the New Zealand Disability Strategy and the Disability Perspective Toolkit	In the 2006/07 financial year, the Ministry planned to further consider how to ensure disability perspectives are included as a core part of policy development and how they can be built into future training modules.	Ministry policy advisers are aware of Cabinet paper requirements with respect to disability perspectives.	No actions planned.
3. Guides and advice on policy development specify consideration about disabled people as part of a diverse New Zealand population	New requirement for 2007/08.	Ministry policy advisers are aware of Cabinet paper requirements with respect to disability perspectives.	Consideration on how to ensure disability perspectives are included as a core part of policy development will be built into training.
4. Agency Cabinet paper template includes a disability perspective section	All of the Ministry’s Cabinet papers and draft Bills are vetted for compliance with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990 and the Human Rights Act 1993. This includes vetting for implications regarding disability.	Where appropriate a separate paragraph on disability perspectives is included.	The Ministry will develop new Cabinet paper templates in 2007/08.
5. Research and evaluation projects include data collection on disabled people	New requirement for 2007/08.	Data collected where appropriate.	No actions planned.
6. Consultation on policy and service development includes disability sector organisations	New requirement for 2007/08.	As part of planning to improve accessibility for the 2008 General Election, the Chief Electoral Office, the Electoral Commission and the Electoral Enrolment Centre consulted widely across the disability sector, government and the community.	No actions planned.
7. Data: the number of disability sector organisations consulted	New requirement for 2007/08.	Data not available.	No actions planned.
8. Examples of Cabinet papers showing a disability perspective	Effective Interventions: Review of the Interface between Mental Health and Alcohol and Other Drug Services and the Criminal Justice System Paper
9. Examples of other policy documents that show a disability perspective
10. Examples of other strategic organisation documents, such as statement of intent, that show a disability perspective	In the Ministry’s Strategic Plan 2005-2010, under Theme 1 Putting Service First, the Ministry sets out its strategy to better understand its customers’ service needs and to enhance its services to reflect this understanding. Implicit in this is the inclusion of awareness of the need of service users with disabilities. The Ministry’s Statement of Intent and Annual Plan are referred to in this plan’s Introduction. The Ministry has commenced the implementation of its People Strategy. This established a number of themes with a disability perspective, such as developing a great working environment, developing people and their careers, attracting talented people, and supporting new members of the team.

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Implementation beyond your agency

Outcome: Government agencies promote action to implement the New Zealand Disability Strategy in other agencies within their monitoring and/or reporting responsibility.

Action outputs	Planned 2006-2007	Actual achieved 2006-2007	Planned for 2007-2008
1. Advice provided to other agencies on implementing the New Zealand Disability Strategy (including a disability perspective in development of policy, funding, service provision)	The Ministry of Justice manages a number of relationships with Crown entities funded through Vote Justice. These include: Electoral Commission, Human Rights Commission, Law Commission, Legal Services Agency, Police Complaints Authority, and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. The Ministry also manages relationships with a number of other agencies funded through Vote Justice Non-departmental Output Classes. These entities and agencies are encouraged by the Ministry to consider disabled people and disability issues and this will be appropriately reflected in the entities’ and agencies’ 2006/07 accountability documentation.	Entities and agencies have been encouraged by the Ministry to consider disabled people and disability issues and, where appropriate, to reflect this in their accountability documentation.	Entities and agencies will be encouraged by the Ministry to consider disabled people and disability issues and, where appropriate, to reflect this in their accountability documentation.

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Leading work that makes a difference

This section is for agencies to describe key work that you are leading that makes a difference in the lives of disabled people. This work may be directly relating to disabled people, or it may be for all people but have a strong impact on disabled people.

You should use this template to:

describe your planned work
report progress against previously planned work and/or new work undertaken since the last plan.

There are separate sections for you to record any specific activities in support of:

New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006
National Health Committee’s 2003 report: To Have an ‘Ordinary’ Life: Community membership for adults with an intellectual disability.

You may like to consider whether you can plan implementation action over several years, with milestone dates that you can report progress against annually. There may be a wider goal that your agency is working towards that several pieces of work may contribute to, and you should refer to this goal in the following template.

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1) The Ministry of Justice Interpreters’ Strategy

a) What time period does this work cover?

Ministry response: please refer to the table “Accessible Services – Policy and practice” for details of the Ministry of Justice Interpreters Strategy.

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2) The New Zealand Action Plan on Human Rights

a) What time period does this work cover?

The Human Rights Commission developed the Plan to cover the period 2005-2010.

b) Please describe this work

The New Zealand Action Plan on Human Rights (NZAPHR) was presented by the Human Rights Commission to the Government on 31 March 2005. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, in consultation with the Ministry of Justice and other relevant departments, is leading the development of options for the Government's response to the Action Plan.

As at 1 June 2007 Cabinet had not considered options for responding to the NZAPHR. The Ministry will consult the Human Rights Commission and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet during 2007/8 to assess what options are appropriate for progressing the Plan.

c) What difference will this work make to disabled people’s lives?

A principal aim of the NZAPHR is to increase the understanding of human rights issues (including disability issues) among policy makers and enhance the likelihood that these factors will become integral to the policy process and therefore addressed fully and at an early stage.

d) What wider goal does this work contribute to? Are there other pieces of work that also contribute to this goal?
(for example, a possible wider goal is for 100% of all new public buildings to be accessible, or all public facilities in urban centres to be accessible)

e) How is progress in achieving this work being measured or to be measured?

Progress targets and milestone dates are yet to be defined.

f) What objectives in the New Zealand Disability Strategy does this work connect with?

Objective 6: Foster an aware and responsive public service - 6.1 and 6.2.

g) What part of your Statement of Intent and/or other strategic documents does this work connect with?

Please refer to the Introductory section of this Plan.

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3) Implementation of the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006

a) What time period does this work cover?

b) Please describe this work

Input and feedback provided by the Ministry as required, as part of the Ministry’s ongoing participation in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s cross-agency forum.

c) What difference will this work make to Deaf people’s lives?

Issues relating to the consistent implementation of the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006 will be identified and addressed through the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s cross-agency forum. This will mean that deaf people and their families can receive consistent service across government services.

e) How is progress in achieving this work being measured or to be measured?

Input and feedback provided by the Ministry as required, as part of the Ministry’s ongoing participation in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet’s cross-agency forum.

f) What objectives in the New Zealand Disability Strategy does this work connect with?

Objective 2: Ensure rights for disabled people - 2.1 and 2.2.

Objective 6: Foster an aware and responsive public service - 6.2, 6.3, 6.4.

g) What part of your Statement of Intent and/or other strategic documents does this work connect with?

Please refer to the Introductory section of this Plan.

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